Christa McAuliffe: A Teacher Reaching for Space
In 1985, a high school teacher from New Hampshire was chosen for an unusual assignment: she would train to fly aboard a space shuttle and teach lessons from space. Christa McAuliffe’s selection drew attention to space exploration, but it also placed a working teacher at the center of a national story.
Sharon Christa Corrigan was born on September 2, 1948, in Boston, Massachusetts. She grew up in nearby Framingham during the early years of the space age. In 1961, when she was twelve, Alan Shepard became the first American to travel into space. The flights of Shepard and other astronauts showed young people a new kind of exploration taking place beyond Earth’s atmosphere.
After graduating from high school, Christa attended Framingham State College, where she studied history and education. She graduated in 1970 and married Steven McAuliffe that same year. She began teaching in Maryland, working with students in American history and other social studies subjects. Later, she earned a master’s degree in education from Bowie State College.
- exploration:
- The act of traveling to or studying an unfamiliar place.
- atmosphere:
- The layer of gases surrounding Earth.
- contributions:
- Things people give or do that help or add value.
- procedures:
- Established steps for carrying out tasks.
- demonstrations:
- Examples that show how something works or happens.
- suspended:
- Stopped temporarily.
- simulated:
- Made to imitate a real situation or experience.
- legacy:
- An influence or impact that continues after someone’s life.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1How did growing up during the early space age connect McAuliffe’s childhood to her later opportunity?
- 2What do McAuliffe’s courses suggest about her approach to teaching history?
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About this biography passage for Middle School
“Christa McAuliffe: A Teacher Reaching for Space” is a biography reading passage about Christa McAuliffe, written for Middle School. It takes about 5 minutes to read (816 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.